PRESERVES.—All the above fruits are preserved in sugar, and put up in quart and pint jars. CHERRIES, PEACHES, PEARS, etc., are also preserved in BRANDY, and sold in glass jars. There is also a great variety of JAMS and MARMALADES, both foreign and domestic; GINGER ROOT, boiled in syrup, etc. FRUIT BUTTER is made from various fruits, as, Apple, Cranberry, Peach, Pear, or Raspberry, etc., by stewing them in sugar or molasses. It is usually sold from pails by the pound, and is much used in some sections.
The delicate flavors of fruit and the fragrant principles of spice and other substances, as vanilla, etc., are extracted by pressure or distillation, and dissolved in spirits of wine for culinary purposes. It is found also, that certain ethers and oils may be so combined (as, for instance, potato oil) as to yield the taste and smell of many fruits, such as pears, apples, grapes, pineapples, etc. Flavoring extracts and essences are variously put up in vials and bottles; among them are LEMON, VANILLA, ROSE, ALMOND, PEACH, CELERY, GINGER, CLOVES, NUTMEG, STRAWBERRY, RASPBERRY, PINEAPPLE, NECTARINE, etc.
ISINGLASS AND GELATINE are used to make jellies, and thicken soups and gravies. Isinglass is made from the intestines of fish. Its advantages over gelatine are lighter color, less flavor, and greater thickening power. In cold water it softens, swells, becomes white and opaque. In hot water it smells a little fishy. Gelatine is made from the bones of animals; it also swells in cold water, but becomes glassy and transparent, while in hot water it has somewhat the smell of glue. It is often sold for isinglass. The test of both is in the fineness and clearness of their jelly. CALVES’ FOOT JELLY is delicate, but less firm. Gelatine is sold in sheets and shreds.
HERBS for seasoning, as, SAGE, SUMMER SAVORY, SWEET MARJORAM, THYME, etc., are sold in the leaf, and also powdered, in tins and paper packets.
Spices are generally understood to be more aromatic and fragrant and less pungent than what are called condiments. Spices are usually added to sweetened food, while condiments, as pepper and mustard, are better suited to meats and food containing salt.
It is impossible to supply genuine articles if the public are not willing to pay for them, and it may be accepted as a general rule, that the lower the price of ground spices and condiments, the more they are adulterated. The materials chiefly used for this purpose are starch, cracker dust and similar harmless substances, and the mixture usually contains as much of the pure material as can reasonably be afforded at the price it sells for. The purchaser may elect whether he will have such articles, or those which are genuine at a higher cost. The grocer does not create wants and demands; he merely supplies them.